Rehearsing the Unknown: Collective Improvisation Techniques

An improvisational dance workshop

Time: 1-4pm    Cost: $50    SIGN UP

4pm Free informal performance, open to the public

Workshop Description
Michael Joviala and Dawn Pratson take participants through a typical rehearsal of their performance collective, Locomotors, an improvising group which weaves together the separate ecologies of somatic awareness, Dalcroze eurhythmics and the jazz tradition of open-form improvisation, sometimes known as ‘free jazz’. Engage with improvised music in specific ways such as going with/going against; resisting/accepting; leading/following; supporting/countering; beginning and ending in order to improvise spontaneous long-form structures in music and dance. The workshop will culminate in an improvised performance centered around one of the group’s compositions.

Locomotors is a collaborative music and dance group rooted in the the practice of Dalcroze Eurhythmics and open-form improvisation, with a special focus on the somatic relationship between sound and movement. The core members are pianist and composer Michael Joviala, and dancer and choreographer Dawn Pratson.

Biographies
Michael Joviala, DMA is a composer/improviser/performer and teacher in New York City. He holds the Diplôme Supérieur from the Institute Jaques-Dalcroze in Geneva, Switzerland and directs the Professional Studies Program for Dalcroze Eurhythmics at the Lucy Moses School in New York. In addition, he works with students of all ages at the Diller-Quaile School of Music, The Dalcroze School of Music and Movement, Columbia University and offers workshops.

Dawn Pratson is a dancer, musician, choreographer and educator with a background in creative arts in therapy. Formal training includes a BA in music and dance, a master’s degree in dance/movement therapy and a license in Dalcroze Eurhythmics. She was the founding music specialist at the Folk Arts-Cultural Treasures charter school in Philly. Currently she teaches and performs with Michael Joviala in the group Locomotors, and on a free-lance basis, dividing her time between Philadelphia and Cape Ann, MA. More at dawnpratson.com